Andy Gibson

After completing a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Linguistics at the University of Canterbury, Andy joined ICDC in December 2005 as a researcher participating in the multi-disciplinary analysis of the animated comedy series bro' Town. This project lead to further research on the varieties of English spoken by Pasifika people in New Zealand and on performance language more generally.

Andy completed his MPhil thesis on the sociolinguistics of singing in New Zealand in July 2010. The thesis and its associated soundfiles can be accessed in the Scholarly Commons at http://hdl.handle.net/10292/962.

In 2011, Andy co-edited a theme issue of the Journal of Sociolinguistics on the sociolinguistics of performance. The issue included Andy's research into the way Flight of the Conchords stylise the voices of various popular musicians.

From 2011 to 2013, Andy was closely involved with the World Internet Project as Project Co-ordinator and Lead Analyst. He now continues his involvement with ICDC through his ongoing position as Reviews and Editorial Associate for the Journal of Sociolinguistics.

Research interests

Pronunciation in popular music, perception of vowels in popular music, language in performance, Maori and Pasifika varieties of New Zealand English.

Gibson, A. (2011). Flight of the Conchords: Recontextualising the Voices of Popular Culture. Journal of Sociolinguistics, 15(5).

Gibson, A. (2010a). New Zealand identity in popular music: Vowel differences between singing and speaking. In H. Johnson (Ed.), Many Voices: Music and National Identity in Aotearoa/New Zealand (pp. 111-121). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Gibson, A. (2010b). Production and Perception of Vowels in New Zealand Popular Music. Unpublished MPhil, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland.

Gibson, A., & Bell, A. (2010). Performing Pasifika English in New Zealand: The case of bro'Town. English World-Wide, 31, 231-251.